Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters owner talks brewing success

Coffee shops may seem like they are on every corner, but beyond the chain stores there are many local craft coffee spots that offer a unique, more personal experience. The family-run Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters has three locations — including Rochester and Royal Oak shops in Oakland County and a shop in downtown Detroit.

Hamood answers the following questions about Dessert Oasis’ origins and their growth in Oakland County:

Q : How did you get started in the craft coffee business?

A : I’ve been in the business more than 10 years and am extremely passionate about craft coffee. I started experimenting with coffee roasting techniques in a small rotisserie oven when I was 13 years old. It’s in my blood. I am also incredibly passionate about business and am extremely driven to do it in a responsible way that creates value and opportunity for people, from our customers and team to the businesses and farmers we work with.

Q : How did Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters get started?

A : We got our start as a small shop in a slow corner of Rochester in 2009. The original intent was for this to be a side business that the family would run together, and give people in the community a place to gather, enjoy desserts and support local musicians playing live music in the evenings, as well as provide musicians an alternative place to play outside of the traditional bar setting. As time went on, I became increasingly passionate about craft coffee and convinced my family to let me start roasting our own coffee. From there, we began to grow steadily both in knowledge and size, evolving our business model into what it is today. In 2014, we opened our second location (in Detroit). Since then, we’ve continued to grow and scale the business, and opened a third location in Royal

Oak, with plans to continue our bootstrapped growth.

Q : What are you most proud of?

A

: Taking the risk of opening a second Oakland County location in Royal Oak. We had no funding, no backing, and ultimately were still incredibly small as a business and it was a tremendous risk. But, just like with the opening of our Detroit location, we were incredibly motivated to just dive in and make it work.

For more information, visit docr.coffee.